Board game apparatus



July 15, 196.9

a. F. DE BONO 35455 5 BOARD GAME APPARATUS,

Filed June 16, 1966 0 Inventor United States Patent 3,455,555 BOARD GAME APPARATUS Edward Francis de Bono, Rose Cottage, N. Road, Whittlesford, Cambridge, England Filed June 16, 1966, Ser. No. 558,045 Claims priority, application Great Britain, June 22, 1965, 26,295/ 65 Int. Cl. A63f 3/02, 3/00 US. Cl. 273-131 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to apparatus for playing a game in which the players move pieces over a playing surface divided into areas. The object of the invention is to provide a new game of this character which is simple to learn alpd play and yet can be played with a high degree of 8 ill.

According to the invention, at least two pieces are provided each of which occupies a group of two or more of the areas into which the playing surface is divided whereby the placing of one of the at least two pieces in a selected position on the playing surface materially reduces the positions available for placing the other piece or pieces on the playing surface. A game is thus provided in which the moves are simple but in which a high degree of skill can be exercised in so placing a piece belonging to one player as to limit an opposing players choice of positions. It has been found advantageous to provide additional pieces each capable of occupying a single area of the playing surface to still further reduce the positions available for placing the other piece or pieces.

The invention will be fully understood from the following more detailed description by way of example of one embodiment thereof, reference being made to the drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a pian of the playing surface,

FIGURE 2 is a plan of the same playing surface but with indications marked on some of the areas into which the playing surface is divided,

FIGURE 3 is a representation of a set of four pieces for use with the playing surface shown in FIGURES 1 and 2.

As shown in FIGURE 1, the playing surface is square in shape and is divided into sixteen equal squares. It may be marked on a board, table-top or any other article presenting a suitable surface.

The set of pieces shown in the drawing comprises two pieces A and B which I will call major pieces and two pieces C and D which I will call minor pieces. Each of the major pieces is made in the shape of an L having a height of three of the squares into which the playing surface is divided and a width equal to two of the squares. Each major piece thus occupies a group of four squares having a total area equal to one quarter of the area of the whole playing surface. The placing of either major piece in a selected position on the playing surface thus materially reduces the positions available for placing the other major piece on the playing surface. Each of the ice minor pieces is made in the shape of a square designed to occupy one of the squares into which the playing surface is divided. The minor pieces thus reduce still further the positions available for placing the other major piece.

The pieces A, B, C and D are fiat plates made of any convenient material, the plates A and B being so coloured as to be distinguishable from each other.

In playing the game, the pieces are placed on a playing surface in a convenient starting position, for instance so that the two major pieces A and B occupy the two adjacent vertical rows of squares in the middle of the playing surface and the two minor pieces C and D occupy two squares in diametrically opposite corners of the playing surface. By the rules of the game the pieces may only be placed in positions in which each piece covers a whole number of squares, and one piece may not overlap another piece. The two major pieces A and B belong to opposing players but the minor pieces C and D are neutal and may be moved by either player.

Each player in turn must first change the position of his major piece and may then, if he Wishes, change the position of either one of the minor pieces. In moving his major piece each player may turn the piece around in any way he pleases and place it in any unoccupied position subject only to the rule that the piece must cover an exact arrangement of squares and must not overlap another piece. The position of the piece is deemed to have been changed if only one of the squares covered has been altered. The object of each player is to position the piece so that there is no position to which the opponents piece can be moved.

An important characteristic of the major pieces A and B with which the game is played is that these pieces are asymmetrical in shape, i.e., they cannot be divided into two exactly similar halves by a straight line. Full advantage of this asymmetry in lending subtlety to the game is obtained by constructing the pieces and framing the rules of the game so as to permit each major piece to be reversed, i.e., turned over, if desired, in the process of effecting a move.

The playing surface shown in FIGURE 2 of the drawing is intended for playing a slightly modified game in 'which the spots appearing on some of the squares are used as indications of value. The moves of this modified game are the same as already described but a player scores one point for each dot covered by his piece. This makes it possible for the players to reach a decision without continuing play until one player cannot move his piece. This may be achieved for instance by awarding a win to the player who first achieves a certain score or to the player having the higher score after play has continued for a certain time. If a player is unable to change the position of his piece he incurs a penalty and the starting positions are resumed.

Although a square playing surface divided into squares is preferred, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to a square shape. The playing surface and the areas into which it is divided may be oblong or of other shapes. For instance they may be triangular or even hex agonal, provided that they form a regular pattern which permits the pieces to occupy a whole number of areas of the same configuration in different positions on the playing surface.

It is also possible to vary the total number of areas into which the playing surface is divided, provided that the configuration of the group of areas occupied by each players piece and the proportion of the total playing surface that the placing of one players piece in a selected position on the playing surface materially reduces the positions available for placing his opponents piece on the playing surface. For'a game in which there' are two major pieces for two players, the proportion of the total playing surface occupied by each players piece should preferably be of the order of one quarter.

The game may be modified, for instance, by increasing the size of the playing surface in relation to the spaces occupied by the pieces, so that a player cannot achieve a position in which his opponent is prevented from moving at all but must endeavour to prevent his opponents piece from occupying or continuing to occupy certain areas to which values are attached for scoring purposes. The game may then be won by the player who first achieves a predetermined score or by the player who achieves the higher score in a given time or in a given number of moves.

It is to be understood that the pieces need not necessarily cover the areas which they occupy provided that each piece is constructed so that when properly placed in a selected position on the playing surface, it at least partially covers or otherwise indicates a particular arrangement or configuration of occupied areas none of which may be occupied at the same time by another piece.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for playing a game comprising a square playing board, two L-shaped plates and two square plates, the surface of said playing board being divided into sixteen equal squares by groups of parallel lines intersecting at right angles and said board being otherwise devoid of such line markings, said L-shaped pieces each having a height equal to three times the height of said equal squares and a width equal to twice the width of said equal squares, and said two square plates each having the same size as said equal squares.

2. Apparatus for playing a game according to claim 1, wherein some but not all of said areas are marked with distinguishing indicia.

3. Apparatus for playing a game comprising a board having a playing area defined thereon, the entire area being divided by line markings into a number of smaller equilateral areas of equal size, the board being otherwise devoid of such area-defining line markings, two asymmetric playing pieces each capable of occupying onefourth of the total number of said areas, and two additional pieces of the same shape as said areas and of a size to occupy one-sixteenth of the total number of said areas.

4. Apparatus for playing a game according to claim '3 wherein some but not all of said areas are marked with distinguishing indicia.

5. Apparatus for playing a game according to claim 3 wherein each of said asymmetric playing pieces is L- shaped.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein each of said asymmetric playing pieces has its opposite sides flat for reversibility.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,414,165 1/ 1947 Paschal 273-131 2,901,255 8/1959 Sutherland 273 137 X FOREIGN PATENTS 552,979 12/1956 Belgium. 619,567 1/ 1927 France. 109,737 9/1917 Great Britain.

DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

